In recent years, we’ve seen Asian stories take center stage, telling beautiful stories about fascinating cultures. But we’ve seen very few coming-of-age stories that focus on Asian boys and girls on the cusp of adolescence, trying to navigate life. In February 2024, Academy Award-nominated director Shawn Wang released a film that forces viewers to relive their childhood and think about all the stupid things they’ve done. Set in 2008, the film Didi (younger brother) The film follows 13-year-old Chris Wang (Isaac Wang) as he spends his last summer before embarking on the turbulent journey of American high school. During this critical period, Chris faces the challenges of adolescence, feels inadequate and discovers the complexities of growing up. As he navigates this transitional period, Chris learns valuable lessons beyond his parents’ guidance, including about love, skating and the value of his mother’s (Joan Chen) love.
Didi (younger brother) has received rave reviews from critics and audiences alike and is set to premiere in U.S. theaters on July 26. I had the chance to speak with director Shawn Wang and actors Isaac Wang and Joan Chen about the film and how they worked to maintain authenticity on screen.
(L-R) Isaac Wang as Chris Wang, Zhang Li-hua as Nai-Nai, Joan Chen as Chong-Xing Wang and Shirley Chan as Vivian Wang in writer/director Shawn Wang’s film “DÌDI,” distributed by Focus Features. Credit: Courtesy of Focus Features/Talking Fish Pictures, LLC. © 2024 All Rights Reserved.
Aayush Sharma: The film is a beautiful coming-of-age story as well as a story of a boy trying to find his place in the world. I was curious to know if you had flashbacks and relived some moments of your own while portraying such scenes on screen. And how did those moments change you as a person?
Shawn Wang: Yeah, I think when I wrote the script, I immersed myself in things that actually happened or that triggered memories, things that actually happened to me. Then I found something that related to the story and I totally changed it. But because it started from a very real place, I always had a feeling for it that I would hang on to, even though the movie version is totally different from what actually happened. I think it was just fun, honestly, to make it real. You can write a scene where a kid kisses an apple, but it might be embarrassing. I didn’t do that, but I wrote it and Isaac had to. (Laughs)
Aayush Sharma: What was the process like understanding and portraying Chris’ journey of self-discovery and how did you ensure his growth throughout the film felt natural?
Isaac Wang: Whenever I try to act, I try to keep my feet on the ground, but I always tell myself, be yourself. The best acting is not acting itself. The best acting is being yourself in another world. That’s how I see it, and that’s how Chris sees it. He was exactly like me just a few years ago. But I was exactly like me a decade ago. So, taking that was a pretty good foundation for the other elements that I put on top of it – how he acted with Maddie (Mahaela Park), how he acted with his friends, and all the other elements. But I think if you have that foundation of being yourself, that’s the most important thing. That’s why I was able to at least get a natural performance.
(From left) Isaac Wang as Chris Wang and Mahaela Park as Maddie in writer/director Shawn Wang’s film “DÌDI,” distributed by Focus Features.
Credit: Courtesy of Focus Features / Talking Fish Pictures, LLC. © 2024 All Rights Reserved.
Aayush Sharma: As a mother and someone from the Asian community, what aspect of your character did you relate to or find challenging the most? How did you ensure your character was portrayed as multifaceted and not a stereotype?
Joan Chen: That’s why I loved the script and the mother character. She’s not a stereotype at all. There’s still a very common image of Asian mothers as strict and emotionless, like the Tiger Mom. But this character is so real and authentic. She’s loving, confused, empathetic, and also very artistic and warm. There’s a calm, quiet strength behind her that I love. It’s not that difficult for me to play. It’s an opportunity to express that side of motherhood and myself that I never had the chance to before, because it’s so relatable, as if I’ve been there myself. It’s a very real, authentic character.
Aayush Sharma: The film highlights the generational gap between Chris and his mother. How did you work with Isaac’s character to realistically portray the tension and tenderness in their relationship?
Shawn Wang: I think we just had really in-depth conversations about the characters. We both wrote pretty detailed backstories for them, and they’re both veteran actors and they’re great at what they do, so on the day it wasn’t so much coaching, it was more like, “Here’s the character. Get it into your head, your heart, your soul,” and then we worked out the little details. We also brought Isaac to the Sundance Director’s Lab, but we had very little rehearsal time on this film. But I think in that week with Isaac, we really drilled him into who Chris is as a character, and all the struggle and all the rough stuff that he does at the center of it, and the vulnerability and the vulnerability and the insecurity that he needs. And then we knew if we could craft everything that he’s doing in a way that seems a little silly, if you understand that, at the root of it, it comes from a place of wanting to be accepted, then we’d be okay. I think he got there in a very beautiful, very layered, very nuanced way.
Joan Chen stars as “Chun-Hsin Wang” in writer-director Shawn Wang’s film “DÌDI,” distributed by Focus Features. Credit: Focus Features / Courtesy of Talking Fish Pictures, LLC. © 2024 All Rights Reserved.
Aayush Sharma: What do you hope audiences take away from this story and what conversations do you think it will provoke around cultural identity and the immigrant experience?
Joan Chen: I think people are going to call their mom as soon as they leave the theater.
Shawn Wang: I hope that when you leave the theater, you buy a T-shirt, which you can also buy online, and I hope that you relive your childhood, and I hope that you laugh and cry again as you think about all the things you learned about yourself and all the things you had to unlearn.
Isaac Wang: I encourage you to follow Shawn Wang on Instagram. (Laughs) I hope you’ll feel that… You may not have life figured out yet, but I hope you at least try.
Didi (younger brother) It is scheduled to be released in US theaters on July 26th.
The post INTERVIEW | Shawn Wang, Isaac Wang and Joan Chen Talk About the Heartwarming Coming-of-Age Story of “DIDI” appeared first on Coastal House Media.
